One of the key reasons behind the success of head coach Kyle Shanahan’s system with the San Francisco 49ers, which led the team to two NFC Championship appearances and two Super Bowl runs in the last six years, is the culture he built. Every player is part of something bigger than themselves, and that mindset turned the roster into one of the strongest in the league, at least until this offseason’s roster shake-up.
Tight end George Kittle is seen as the embodiment of that culture and has become one of the fan base’s most beloved figures in this new era of 49ers football. In a recent interview, the tight end shared what he loves most about Shanahan and what gives him complete trust in his head coach.
George Kittle Explains Kyle Shanahan’ Approach With His Players
San Francisco’s head coach has an advantage that not every NFL coach has: he grew up with Mike Shanahan, his father, who was a highly successful coach in the league. He watched his father win Super Bowl 29 as the offensive coordinator for the 49ers, and later win Super Bowls 32 and 33 as the head coach of the Denver Broncos.
Shanahan’s background helped him develop one of the most praised modern offensive mindsets in the NFL, producing head coaches that come from his coaching tree in what has become a standard of quality in the league today. Beyond the offensive genius that he is, Kittle revealed a trait about Shanahan that sets him apart and truly captivates his players on the June 13th edition of “The Pat McAfee Show.”
“One of my favorite things about Coach Shanahan is he has an open door policy..
Any player can go in there at any time and I really respect that” ~ @gkittle46 #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/LN3I3hheub
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 13, 2025
“One of my favorite things about Coach Shanahan is that he has a 24-7 open door policy,” Kittle said. “If somebody has a question for him, someone wants to know where they stand with the team, someone has an idea, his office is always open, unless he’s in some private meeting or something like that. But any player can go in at any time. And so I really, really respect that about him.”
Kittle explains that Shanahan treats his players directly, and besides demanding a lot from his athletes, he makes it clear that he chose them for a specific reason. Often criticized for having draft boards that differ from other teams, one thing is clear, Shanahan’s system requires specific pieces to function, and he does not hide that.
“The thing he does really well is he doesn’t put guys in a position where they’re not going to succeed,” Kittle added. “He doesn’t ask guys to do crazy things. He goes like, ‘Look, I drafted you for this reason. This is what I know that you’re really good at. I’m going to try to get you to do this as many times as you possibly can.’ And he does that for the entire roster, which is pretty special.”
The 49ers have fallen just short season after season in recent years. This frustration led to a roster overhaul during the 2025 offseason that shook the core structure of the team, with key players like Deebo Samuel, Dre Greenlaw, and Talanoa Hufanga, leaving the franchise.
However, the franchise hopes to get back on track the same way it did between 2020 and 2021. After losing the Super Bowl to the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2019 season, the 49ers finished the 2020 season with only six wins after being derailed by injuries. The very next year, San Francisco rebounded with a 10-7 record, made the playoffs as a wild card and advanced to the NFC Championship Game before falling to the Los Angeles Rams.
The 2024 season brought similar struggles to those in 2020, as the 49ers finished 6-11 and missed the playoffs. Plagued by injuries and inconsistency, they finished fourth in the NFC West and managed just two wins on the road, with a 1-5 record against division opponents.
Now, one year removed from the Super Bowl 58 loss, Shanahan, Kittle and the 49ers are looking to change the course. With a calm offseason, key extensions handled on time and the locker room chemistry intact, the pursuit of a sixth title for the franchise centers around finally exorcising the ghosts of past seasons and rewarding one of the best head coaches in the NFL.